Moving On
by Spirit Lovelorn
Summary: One shot where Squall has died at the end of the game. Rinoa experiences a supernatural encounter that proves love is stronger than death.


DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of the FF8 characters, yada-yada-yada, and I never will. Squall, Rinoa, and everyone else really belong to Squaresoft.   
  
Moving on  
by Spirit Lovelorn  
  
6 months ago...  
  
She turned around to see him fall. It was so sudden, so surprising. She rushed to his side and lifted his head. He wasn't breathing. She was alone, the love of her life lay dead in her arms. She collapsed over him and started to sob.  
  
"Don't leave me," she whispered. "Please Squall, don't leave me."  
  
She looked at his pale face. Dried tears clung to his cheeks. She sobbed harder, wanting his eyes to open, for him to be all right. But, unfortunately, it was too late. He was gone, never to come back.  
  
Now...  
  
"Rinoa, are you all right?" General Caraway asked his daughter.  
  
"Yes, Father," Rinoa lied.  
  
With peace now throughout the world, Rinoa had been able to patch up things with her estranged father. She had returned home after she and her friends had defeated Sorceress Ultimecia from the future. She should have been happy, but something terrible had happened right after defeating Ultimecia.  
  
While everyone else had found their way back through the time-compressed world, the man Rinoa had fallen in love with, Squall, had gotten lost. Rinoa only found him just in time to see him die. Those memories remained fresh in her mind, scarring her. She tried, but even her sorceress power couldn't save her.  
  
"You've hardly touched your dinner," Caraway pointed out.  
  
"I'm not that hungry," Rinoa replied quickly. "May I be excused?"  
  
Caraway nodded, and she left the table. She ran to her bedroom and threw herself on the canopied bed. She buried her face in the satin pillow and cried. Her choked sobs shook and rattled the bed. After all this time, she could not let go of her grief.  
  
"Rinoa." Caraway came into her room. "Is it that young man you're crying over again?"  
  
"I loved him," Rinoa sobbed.  
  
"I know you did," her father said. He sat down on her bed. "Life is cruel sometimes. The people you love the most are taken away from you too soon."  
  
"I'll never love again," Rinoa vowed.  
  
~~~~~  
  
It was midnight and the moon was full. Rinoa was asleep under her white comforter. Clutched in her left hand was Squall's ring, a silver band with a lion head design.   
  
"I'll be here..."  
  
Rinoa's eyes snapped open. Was it just a dream, or did she just hear Squall's voice? She climbed out of bed and walked to the window. She pulled the powder blue curtains aside and opened the window. She leaned her head out and looked around. Nothing.  
  
"Just my imagination," she thought aloud.  
  
Rinoa closed the window and went back to bed. She started to drift off, but was reawakened by the voice.  
  
"I'll be waiting here... for you... so..."  
  
Rinoa sat up. It couldn't be her imagination. Squall's voice sounded like it was in her room. She turned on the lamp on the bedstand. No one else was in the room. She sighed and turned off the lamp.  
  
"If you come here... you'll find me."  
  
Rinoa was starting to freak out. Why was she hearing his voice? Was she losing it?  
  
A scratching sound at the door made Rinoa jump and shake the bed. She got out of bed and cautiously approached the door. She slowly opened it. Something jumped at her and she screamed.  
  
"Rinoa!" General Caraway came running down the hall. "What's wrong?"  
  
Caraway turned on the light. Rinoa was on the floor. Her dog, Angelo, was standing on her, licking her face.  
  
"I'm sorry, Father," Rinoa apologized. "Angelo scared me."  
  
"I'm glad everything's all right," Caraway said. "Good night."  
  
Caraway returned to his room and Rinoa got up. She turned off the light and crawled back into bed. Angelo jumped up and curled up by Rinoa's feet. Rinoa drifted off into a deep sleep, dreaming of lions and angels.  
  
~~~~~  
  
"Rinoa, there's a letter for you," Caraway said. He handed an envelope to Rinoa, who promptly tore it open.  
  
"It's from my friend Selphie at Balamb Garden," she told her father.  
  
Dear Rinoa,  
  
Hey, how's it going? Everyone here is trying to keep it together. Matron and Headmaster Cid sealed off Squall's room. They feel as though they lost a child.  
  
Irvine finally returned to Galbadia Garden. He promised he'd write. Zell, Quisty, and me stick together. We hang out a lot. You should come visit sometime. It'd be great.  
  
I'm already making plans for this year's Garden Festival. I want it to be great. Got any suggestions? I convinced Zell and Quisty to play music with me again. It will be so much fun. I've already got plenty of volunteers. Can you believe that?  
  
Sorry this is so short, but I've got a lot of work to do planning the festival. Please write back!  
Love,  
Selphie  
  
It felt good to hear from Selphie. She was such an energetic and optimistic person.  
  
Angelo was right at Rinoa's heels when she went into the parlor. She took a book off the shelf and a piece of paper fell out of it. She picked it up.  
  
The paper contained a drawing of the world map. It was quite a good drawing, made with charcoal. There was a message written out on the Centra continent. Rinoa read it aloud to herself.  
  
"I'll be here."  
  
Rinoa gasped and dropped the paper. Who could be playing such a sick joke? This was really starting to freak her out. Angelo picked up the paper in her mouth and put her paw on Rinoa's foot, trying to get her attention.  
  
"No, Angelo, I don't want it," she said to the dog.  
  
Angelo whined and wagged her stub of a tail. Rinoa looked at the dog curiously. Why did Angelo want her to look at the map? She took it carefully and looked at it again.  
  
The message was written on the southwestern tip of the Centra continent. Rinoa took a moment to remember what was there.   
  
"Edea's house," Rinoa remembered. "The place where Squall and I promised. Oh, Angelo, do you think Squall wants me to go there?"  
  
Angelo barked and cocked her head. Rinoa smiled and patted the little black dog on her head.  
  
~~~~~  
  
Rinoa was standing in the middle of the field by Edea's house. It was raining, and it was cold. When she shivered, two arms came around her, warming her. She looked up to see Squall's face.  
  
"Squall..."  
  
"If you come here, you'll find me," he whispered in her ear. "I promise."  
  
Rinoa's eyes snapped open. She had been dreaming. It was still night, but Rinoa suddenly felt that she had to leave right away. She put on her attire (black sleeveless top, black shorts, dark blue wrap-around mini-skirt, a long light blue sleeveless sweater, a black ribbon tied on her left arm, light blue arm covers, and black hiking boots) and took some Gil out of her purse. She scribbled down a note for her father and left the Caraway mansion.  
  
She knew her way around the city pretty well, but even so, it was still dangerous for a girl to be out on the streets at night by herself. She moved quickly towards the train station, which fortunately, wasn't that far from home.  
  
At the train station, she purchased a ticket to Dollet. She knew that she could get a ship to the Centra continent from there. She boarded the train and found her seat. She sat there quietly, clutching Squall's ring in her hand.  
  
The train left the station, Rinoa staring out the window. She watched as the green fields turned into rocky red dirt and plateaus.  
  
"So, why are you going to Dollet?" An old woman was seated next to her.   
  
"Oh, I want to get a ship to Centra from there," Rinoa replied, turning around to face the old woman.  
  
The old woman had brown eyes and gray hair pinned up into a bun. She wore a maroon dress that went down to her tan loafers. Dark blue yarn and knitting needles sat in her lap.  
  
"What an interesting ring," the old woman noticed the lion head ring in Rinoa's hand. "Is it from a boyfriend?"  
  
"I guess you could say that," Rinoa answered.  
  
"Young love," the old woman sighed. "I remember when I first met my husband. He was a soldier. He died during the Sorceress War. I was grieving for years after that."  
  
"I'm so sorry," Rinoa said softly.  
  
"Always treasure someone you love," the woman said. "You never know when they'll be taken from you."  
  
'Tell me about it,' Rinoa thought.  
  
~~~~~  
  
"Miss, this is only a fishing boat," a man with dark hair and denim suspenders was telling Rinoa. "There's nothing on that continent, 'cept for ruins."  
  
"Please, sir, this is really important to me," Rinoa begged. She held up her pouch. "I'll give you everything in this pouch if you take me to Centra."  
  
The man was quiet for a few minutes, then said, "All right, get on board. We'll drop you off where an orphanage used to stand."  
  
"Thank you," Rinoa said. She handed the pouch to the man and ran onto his boat.  
  
~~~~~  
  
"See you around, young lady," the boat guy called as the boat sailed away.  
  
Rinoa trudged along the sand, hoping she wouldn't get attacked by the monsters that inhabited the land. Edea's house was only a short distance away. Hopefully, she'd get there without any problems.  
  
She ran as fast as she could, narrowly missing a few run-ins with monsters. When she reached Edea's house, she let out a huge sigh of relief.  
  
"I'm here, Squall," she whispered.  
  
She carefully stepped over the broken stone paveway, and jumped over a fallen column. Her feet landed on some soft grass in his field. The sun had begun to set, and the sky was a deep rosy pink. Rinoa held the ring against her heart.  
  
"Rinoa."  
  
Rinoa turned around and smiled. Squall was there behind her. He looked exactly like he did when he was alive, only transparent. He stepped up to her side.  
  
"It's good to see you," Rinoa said.   
  
"Same here," Squall answered. "Has everything been gong okay?"  
  
"Not really," Rinoa replied. "I've been grieving over you."  
  
"I'm sorry," Squall's voice echoed around Rinoa. "I didn't intend on dying. I was trying to get back to you."  
  
"I know," Rinoa said, her eyes tearing up. "Why did you come back?"  
  
"To say good-bye."  
  
Rinoa sat down in the grass. The translucent Squall sat down next to her. Rinoa let a few tears fall down her cheeks. Squall glanced at her sad face. He tried to take her hand, but only passed through it.  
  
"Rinoa, I will wait for you," he said. "Forever, if I have to. I was lucky to have known you and to have been, and still be, loved by you."  
  
Squall's lips pulled back into a smile. He never could have looked more gorgeous. Rinoa smiled back. Maybe now, she could move on.  
  
Squall leaned over and kissed her lips. Although she could not feel his touch, she could sense all of the love he felt for her. He moved away from her a bit, and stared at her, his deep blue eyes shining.  
  
"I love you," he said.  
  
And with that, Squall was gone. Rinoa sat there in the grass, thinking about what just happened. She was startled by a hand landing on her shoulder.  
  
"Rinoa, what are you doing here?" the kind voice of Edea Kramer asked.  
  
"Just saying good-bye," Rinoa said. "I think I can finally go on with my life."  
  
"That's good," Edea commented. "...Do you need a way home?"  
  
"Yeah," Rinoa answered. "My father's probably... Hey, why are you here?"  
  
"Cid and I came to get a few things," Edea replied, looking a little sad. "After that, I don't think we'll ever be back here again."  
  
~~~~~  
  
As the boat pulled away, Rinoa took one last look at the crumbling stone house by the beach. It would hold the secrets of her loved ones forever, and a few of hers too.  
  
'I'll see you again someday, Squall.' Rinoa pushed the hair out of her face. 'Wait for me, and I will come.'  
  
THE END 


End file.
